Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1887-05-03
CHAPTER 1.

CHAPTER l.
MY VISITOR
There are some events of which every cir
cumstance and surrounding detail scents tc
be craven on the memory in such fashion that
we cannot forget 1t, and SO 1t is with the
scene that l am about to describe. 1t ries
as clearly before my mind at this moment as
though it had happened yesterday.
1t was in This very month, something over
twenty Yeas ago, that /, Ludwig Horace
Holly, was sitting one night in my rooms at
Cambridge, grinding away at some mathe-
NAUTICAL work. forget what. was to go up
for my fellowship within week, and was ex-
pected by my tutor and my college generally
to distinguish myself. At last, wearied out,
/ flung my book down, and, going to the
mantelpiece took down a pipe and filled It,
There was candle burning on the mantel-
piece, and long, narrow glass at the back OF
it; and as / was in the act Of lighting the
pipe caught sight Of my own countenance
in the glass and paused TO reflect The lighted
match burned away till it scorched my fin
gers, forcing me to drop it, but still | stood
and stared at myself in the glass and re-
Elected.
"Well," l said aloud, at last, lit Is to be-
hoped that / shall be able TO do something
with the inside of my head, for l shall cer-
tainly never do anything by the help Of the
outside"
This remark viii doubtless strike anybody
who reads it as being slightly obscure, but
was in reality abiding to my physical de-
ficiencies Most men of twenty-five are en-
dowed at any rate with some share of the
comeliness of youth, but to me even this was
denied Short, thickset, and deep chested
almost to dcformity, with long, sinewy arms.
heavy features, deep set gray eyes, low
brow half overgrown with mop Of thick
black hair, like deserted clearing on which
the forest had once more begun to encroach-
such was my appearance nearly quarter OF
century ago, and such, with some modiiica-
ton, is it to this day. Like Cain, l was
branded-branded by nature with tho stamp
Of abnormal ugliness, as l was gifted by ma
ture with iron and abnormal strength and
considerable intellectual powers. So ugly
was that the spruce young men of my col
lege though they were proud enough OF my
feats of endurance and physical proves, did
not even care to be seen walking with me.
Was it wonderful that / was misanthropic
and sulleni Was it wonderful that l brooded
and worked alone, and had no friends-at
least only onel was set apart by Nature to
live alone and draw comfort from her breast,
and hers only Women hated the sight Of
me. Only week before had heard one
call me "monster" when she thought was
out Of hearing, and say that had converted
her to Darwin's theory. Once, indeed, wo-
man pretended to care for me, and lavished
all the pent-up affection of my nature upon
her. Then money that was to have come TO
me went elsewhere, and she discarded Inc.
pleaded with her as have never pleaded with
any living creature before or since, for / was
caught by her sweet face, and loved her; and
in the end, by way Of answer, she took me to
tAe glass, and stood side by side with me, and
looked into 1t.
aNow," she said, "if am Beauty, who are
sou" and l cursed her and fed. That was
when was only 20.
And so l stood and stared, and felt sort
uf grim satisfaction in the sense of my own
loneliness-for l had neither father nor
mother nor brother and as did there camo
knock at my door.
listened before | went TO open 1t, for it
was nearly IL o'clock at night, and was in
no mood to admit any stranger. ! had but
one friend in the college, or, indeed, in the
world; perhaps it was he.
Just then the person outside the door
ccughed. and hastened to open 1t, for /
know the cough.
A tall man of about 80, with the remains
of great personal beauty, came hurrying I'm,
staggering beneath the weight of a massive
iron box which he carried by n handle in his
right hand. He placed tine box upon the
table. and then fell into an awful fit of cough
ing He coughed and coughed till his face
became quite purple, and ut last he sunk into
a chair and began to spit up blood. poured
out some whisky into tumber and gave it
to him. He drank it and seemed better,
though his better was very bad indeed.
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